CBS Hypes ‘Presumptive President’ Hillary on Forbes ‘Powerful Women’ List

May 26th, 2015 12:09 PM

While ignoring the rolling release of her State Department e-mails, Tuesday’s CBS This Morning did find time to tout Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton making the number two spot on the annual Forbes magazine list of the world’s most powerful women.

Co-host Gayle King asked Forbes Media executive vice president Moira Forbes: “Hillary Clinton jumped from number six to number two, because she's running for office?” Forbes declared: “That's why she made the jump. She’s seen as obviously the very likely Democratic candidate but also possibly the presumptive president of the free world. And when you're seen as having that power in the future, it gives you that power today.”                  

Forbes briefly alluded to Clinton’s scandals: “She's also banked huge bucks thanks to her very lucrative speaking engagements, got a lot of controversy around that.” However, she concluded that Clinton “still has really favorable poll ratings despite all the issues that she’s been having.”

Here is a transcript of the May 26 exchange:

8:31 AM ET

NORAH O’DONNELL: Only on CBS This Morning, Forbes is revealing its annual list of the world’s 100 most powerful women. It includes 24 CEOs, 15 billionaires, and eight heads of state. The power women on this year’s list control $1 trillion in annual revenues. At number five, General Motors CEO Mary Barra, Janet Yellen, Chair of the Federal Reserve, comes in at number four. Third is Melinda Gates, co-hair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is number two. And the most powerful women for the fifth consecutive year is German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

(...)

GAYLE KING: Hillary Clinton jumped from number six to number two, because she's running for office?

MOIRA FORBES: She is. She’s seen as the presumptive-

KING: Well, I know she is, Moira. But, I mean, is that why she – is that why she made the jump?

FORBES: That's why she made the jump. She’s seen as obviously the very likely Democratic candidate but also possibly the presumptive president of the free world. And when you're seen as having that power in the future, it gives you that power today. She's also banked huge bucks thanks to her very lucrative speaking engagements, got a lot of controversy around that. But she also still has really favorable poll ratings despite all the issues that she’s been having.

(...)